RALEIGH — Republicans at the North Carolina legislature on Monday rolled out their final two-year budget bill, hopeful that sweeteners on employee pay raises, infrastructure and tax cuts for individuals will attract enough Democratic support so the long-delayed plan can become law.
The consensus agreement from House and Senate leaders was negotiated with input from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who left the door open last week to signing the final plan after General Assembly votes this week.
The measure would give public school teachers average pay raises of at least 5% over the next two years and one-time bonuses reaching about $2,800, according to news releases from GOP leaders. That teacher pay average could reach 6.7% when a new salary supplement favoring low-wealth counties is included. Rank-and-file employees would get roughly 5% raises and at least $1,000 bonuses.
